Kevin Hart Steps Down As Host Of The Oscars

Kevin Hart has taken to his Twitter account to announce that he is stepping down as host of the Oscars.

Just two days ago it was announced that comedian and actor Kevin Hart would be taking on the high-profile role at the awards show.

However, Hart has since declared that he is stepping down from the gig due to homophobic tweets that resurfaced from the Comedian's social media account on Thursday that caused a stir in the LGBTQI community.

The Tweets, which were posted between 2009 and 2011, included homophobic terminology and slurs and declared anti-gay sentiments. Some of these Tweets have since been deleted.

Hart has since taken to his Twitter account to announce that he is stepping down from the role.

I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscar's....this is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.

"I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscar's," Hart wrote. "This is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.

I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscar's....this is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.

"I'm sorry that I hurt people," he continued. "I am evolving and want to continue to do so. My goal is to bring people together not tear us apart. Much love & appreciation to the Academy. I hope we can meet again."

Before officially stepping down, Hart posted an Instagram video from Sydney, where he is currently touring, saying that the Academy had asked him to apologise for his old posts. However, he refused to do so.

"I passed. The reason I passed is because I've addressed this several times. This is not the first time this has come up," he said. "Regardless, to the Academy, I'm thankful for the opportunity, if it goes away, no harm, no foul," Hart added.